South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg pushed back against allegations he has had trouble connecting with black voters and convincing them to support his campaign for president.
Buttigieg appeared on CNN on Thursday night in an interview with host Chris Cuomo, who questioned Buttigieg on his ability to turn out black voters in the Democratic primary and general election, should he get that far.
“Even in that little town, you have a problem with African Americans. They are the sine qua non, ‘without this, nothing,’ for Democrats, and they don’t like you,” Cuomo said.
“Well, that’s not true. The black voters who know me best in the city of South Bend are largely responsible for how I got reelected with 80% of the vote because of the good work we were doing at home,” Buttigieg responded.
Cuomo continued to push back against Buttigieg and said that evidence suggests black voters are not gravitating to the Indiana mayor and may not even pick Buttigieg as a second or third choice in the primary race.
“I reject the idea that I’m not going to be able to win black voters,” Buttigieg said. “We have got to stop talking about the black vote like it’s one person. We are talking about a diverse constituency and a lot of Americans who, frankly, have felt not only abused by the Republican Party but taken advantage of by the Democratic Party or taken for granted.”
“We have to make sure we’re showing we take nothing for granted, that we’re going to earn those votes,” Buttigieg said.
House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn said on Monday that there is “no question” that Buttigieg’s sexual orientation has affected Buttigieg’s appeal in the older black community. Buttigieg rejects Clyburn’s assertion.
